Temple Vs Wyoming Final Score, 2011 New Mexico Bowl: Owls Cruise To 37-15 Victory Over Cowboys

For the first time in 32 years, the Temple Owls have won a bowl game, defeating the Wyoming Cowboys, 37-7, in the 2011 Gildan New Mexico Bowl. The only thing that could have made the day better for the Owls was a win by the basketball team. That didn't happen, as the Owls fell to Texas.

But the Owls were the dominant team in the New Mexico Bowl. Running back Bernard Pierce had 25 carries for 99 yards and two touchdown runs. He finishes the season with 27 rushing touchdowns. The question for Pierce to answer is if he will leave school early and enter the 2012 NFL Draft. Quarterback Chris Coyer had 70 yards on the ground and threw for 169 yards and a 61-yard touchdown pass.

Wyoming freshman quarterback Brett Smith had a tough day, throwing three interceptions. He finished the game with 96 passing yards and a team-high 65 rushing yards. He threw two touchdown passes, the second one coming on a 14-yard strike to Kody Sutton. Smith picked up the two-point conversion on the

Temple improved to 9-4 on the season while Wyoming comes in at 8-5.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

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2011 New Mexico Bowl Score: Temple Extends Lead Over Cowboys, 34-7

Everything is come up aces for the Temple Owls in the 2011 New Mexico Bow. They lead the Wyoming Cowboys in the fourth quarter, 34-7.

While the Owls haven't put a touchdown on the board in the second half, Temple has added six points via two two field goals. Brandon McManus kicked a 34-yard field goal toward the end of the third quarter and added a 37-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter.

The Wyoming offense had just 160 total yards in the first half and have only picked up 24 yards for 184 early in the fourth quarter. Without a miracle or two, the Cowboys are starting a loss in this year's New Mexico Bowl.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

2011 New Mexico Bowl Halftime Score, Temple Vs. Wyoming: Owls End 1st Half With 28-7 Lead

The Wyoming Cowboys are going to need a second half comeback to defeat the Temple Owls in the 2011 New Mexico Bow now that they are down 28-7 at halftime. The Cowboys and the Owls exchanged touchdowns within seconds of each other in the final minute of the first half.

Wyoming quarterback Brett Smith led the Cowboys on an 11-play, 62-yard drive that was capped with a 21-yard strike from Smith to Josh Dotson. However, on Temple's first play from the line of scrimmage on the next drive, quarterback Chris Coyer threw a deep pass to Rod Streater for a 61-yard touchdown pass.

Smith is 9-of-14 for 78 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions (the second one coming on the last play of the first half). He also leads the Cowboys with 55 rushing yards.

Temple running back Bernard Pierce scored the first two Owls touchdowns and has 12 carries for 53 yards. Temple has 278 total yards to Wyoming's 160.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

2011 New Mexico Bowl Score, Temple Vs. Wyoming: Matt Brown Increases Owls Lead To 21-0

If it isn't Bernard Pierce picking up touchdowns for the Temple Owls, it's going to be fellow running back Matt Brown. The diminutive back is a bulldog who plays to the utmost in his 5-foot-5 frame. He just put the Owls up, 21-0, against the Wyoming Cowboys.

Temple started its latest scoring drive when Wyoming's Brett Smith threw an interception that went into the hands of Kee-ayre Griffin. Taking it from his own 35-yard line, Griffin returned it to Wyoming's 35-yard line for a 30-yard gain. Temple quarterback Chris Coyer had a 10-yard pass to Malcolm Eugene to spark the drive and then Bernard Pierce rushed 12 yards for a first down on 3rd-and-1. Coyer almost had a 13-yard touchdown run, but his foot touched the white before he crossed the goal line. Brown then completed the drive with a one-yard touchdown run.

The Cowboys need to find a touchdown immediately to stay in this game.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

New Mexico Bowl Score, Temple Vs. Wyoming: Bernard Pierce Continues To Run Through Wyoming For 14-0 Lead

The Temple Owls have dominated the Wyoming Cowboys through the opening seconds of the second quarter. Owls running back Bernard Pierce found the end zone for his second touchdown and a 14-0 lead in the 2011 New Mexico Bowl.

Brett Smith and the Cowboys brought the ball from their own 40-yard line to Temple's 31-yard line, but the drive stalled there. After 2nd-and-16 failed to be changed, the Cowboys called a timeout to rethink things, but two plays later a field goal was attempted. Daniel Sullivan came up short on the 49-yard attempt.

Temple countered with a dose of 5-foot-5 running back Matt Brown to start the drive before handing off to Pierce once again. Pierce picked up six yards before scoring another one-yard touchdown.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

Temple Vs. Wyoming Score, 2011 New Mexico Bowl: Bernard Pierce Scores 26th Rushing TD

If this is Temple Owls running back Bernard Pierce's last collegiate game, he's going out in style during the 2011 New Mexico Bowl. Pierce has already put his team on the board after the first drive of the game. Pierce racked up eight carries for 31 yards and the touchdown run for the lead against the Wyoming Cowbouts

He had a key run on 4th-and-1 by getting six yards and putting the ball one yard away from Wyoming territory. Clearly, Pierce is already able to exploit the Cowboys rush defense.

The Cowboys now get a crack at the ball and freshman quarterback Brett Smith will want to show why he was the team MVP ad the Mountain West Conference freshman of the year.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

Dave Christensen Agrees To Five-Year Extension With Wyoming Cowboys, According To Report

On the same day that the Wyoming Cowboys are set to face the Temple Owls in the 2011 New Mexico Bowl, the school had signed head coach Dave Christensen to a five-year contract extension, according to Eric Blumberg of KOMU.com.  Christensen has guided the Cowboys to its second bowl game in three years.

Christensen was hired from the Missouri Tigers in late 2008 after a stint as the offensive coordinator and assistant head coach at the school. He guided the Cowboys to a 7-6 record that included a 35-28 victory over the Fresno St. Bulldogs in the 2009 New Mexico Bowl.

Christensen was pursued by the Houston Cougars after head coach Kevin Sumlin left for the Texas A&M Aggies.

Two thousand nine was a step back for the Cowboys with a 3-9 record, but the team rebounded in 2010 with an 8-4 record heading into the 2011 New Mexico Bowl. A victory would give the Cowboys its best record since 1996 when the team went 10-2 as a member of the WAC.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

2012 NFL Draft Rumors: Temple's Bernard Pierce Could Make Jump After 2011 New Mexico Bowl

The Temple Owls might see running back Bernard Pierce for the last time in a team uniform on Saturday during the 2011 New Mexico Bowl against the Wyoming Cowboys. Pierce is a strong candidate to leave early for the 2012 NFL Draft, and ESPN NFL Draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. believes (Insider subscription required) a great game against the Cowboys will seal Pierce's decision to leave early.

Pierce rebounded from a sophomore slump to post his second 1,300-plus rushing yard season, going for 1,381 so far this season and 1,361 as a freshman in 2009. He's rushed for 25 touchdowns so far this season and has 51 in his career. The Cowboys allow 230 yards on the ground, which could provide a great matchup for Pierce and Matt Brown to run wild.

Running backs usually slide down in the draft, but Pierce appears likely to be a middle-rounds selection. He isn't quite at the level of Trent Richardson or LaMichael James, but he has the size (6-foot-1, 218 pounds) to be considered a decent prospect coming out of a MAC school.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

2011 New Mexico Bowl: Temple Vs. Wyoming Game Time, TV Schedule And More

For the Wyoming Cowboys, who finished 2010 with a 3-9 record, just making a bowl this season is a huge accomplishment, but a victory in the 2011 New Mexico Bowl would make their rapid improvement that much sweeter. The Temple Owls, meanwhile, lost ex-coach Al Golden to the Miami Hurricanes, but under Steve Addazio they've managed to equal their 8-4 record from last season, and enter this game with an opportunity to best their 2010 season.

The Cowboys, led by freshman quarterback Brett Smith, will need to work to generate offense against a Temple defense that allowed the third lowest points per game in the FBS this season. That match up between the Cowboys offense and Owls defense figures to be the pivotal one in this game, as the Cowboys tallied less than 20 points only three times this season, while the Owls defense allowed more than 20 points on merely two occasions in 2011.

For the Cowboys defense, it comes down to one thing: stopping star Owls RB Bernard Pierce. Pierce toted the rock 248 times this season, amassing 25 touchdowns and 1,381 yards. Needless to say that the Cowboys defense, which surrendered over 230 yards per game on the season, will be tested.

Game date, time: 12:00 pm MT, Saturday, December 17

Location: University Stadium, Albuquerque, New Mexico

TV channel: ESPN

Series history: Wyoming leads 1-0.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

New Mexico Bowl 2011 Preview: Wyoming, Temple Collecting Awards In Anticipate Of Saturday's Game

The Wyoming Cowboys (8-4) and the Temple Owls (8-4) square off this Saturday in the 2011 Gildan New Mexico Bowl Game at University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM. The appearance marks the second New Mexico Bowl showing for the Cowboys in three season, having won the 2009 New Mexico Bowl game against Fresno State.

Wyoming finished their season strong, winning three of their final four games and collecting some Mountain West Conference awards along the way. Not only did QB Brett Smith win MW Freshman of the Year, but head coach Dave Christensen took home the Coach of the Year award, and seven different other athletes found their way to the All Mountain West Second Team.

The Owls certainly did not let Wyoming take all the press, however, earning All-American honorable mentions for running back Bernard Pierce and punter Brandon McManus. Pierce finished the season with 25 touchdowns and 1381 rushing yards for a 5.6 yards per carry ratio.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

2011 New Mexico Bowl Odds: Temple Vs Wyoming

When the college bowl season kicks off on Dec. 17, the Temple Owls and the Wyoming Cowboys will begin things with the 2011 Gildan New Mexico Bowl. With less than two weeks for both teams to prepare for the bowl game, the Owls opened as 7.5-point favorites over the Cowboys, according to Odds Shark. The line almost immediately dropped a half of a point, but Temple is the strong favorite in this game.

The Cowboys do have a tough task ahead of them. The Temple defense allows the third fewest points at the FBS level with 13.8 points surrendered. And the Temple offense averages 30.1 points this season. Now, we could write that off as just Temple being part of the MAC, but we shouldn't sleep on such MACtion.

The over/under for this game opened at 46.5 points and moved to 47 shortly thereafter. Wyoming scores and allows 27 points this season. The final score will probably hit the over.

For more on this game, visit MAC blog The Hustle Belt, Mountain West blog Mountain West Connection and Wyoming blog Cowboy Altitude. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more on the bowl season.

New Mexico Bowl 2011: Temple Owls Vs. Wyoming Cowboys

The 2011 Gildan New Mexico Bowl kicks off the college football bowl season when the Temple Owls and the Wyoming Cowboys clash in Albuquerque, N.M.